We’re delighted to debut the brand new video from Jared & The Mill, “Ides of Fall” taken from 2013’s full length release, Western Expansion. And, as is our way, we have a look into frontman Jared Kolesar’s record collection from where he draws inspiration. —Ed.
Bob Dylan, The Freewheelin’ Bob Dylan | “This album in particular really blew me away with Bob Dylan’s songwriting talents. He is a master craftsman of words and can very easily get his message across while maintaining the artistry and poetry that he’s been made famous for. “The Girl From North County Fair” really hits home for me and is definitely a song that made me want to be a songwriter.
“Don’t Think Twice, It’s Alright” is another awe-inspiring tune for me, it perfectly describes an emotion everybody has felt and he immediately takes you to whatever moment and makes you relive the emotions he’s talking about, it’s fantastic.”
Jackson Browne, Late For The Sky | “Late for the sky is the album that really made me fall in love with Jackson Browne’s songwriting. the song “Fountain of Sorrow” is outrageously moving to me, the bit about the photographs that he’s looking at of this girl… well… I can’t really describe it, it’s definitely something you need to experience yourself. I was turned onto Jackson Browne by my older brother Torrey, and we would listen to this album while playing video games way later into the night than our parents would have liked to know when we were in 5th and 7th grade, maybe that’s where my nostalgia comes from for this album, I don’t know.”
Blink 182, Take Off Your Pants and Jacket | “I was raised on a lot of Classic Rock, Country Folk, and Golden oldies earlier on in my childhood, and the first “Pop” music I was exposed to in my childhood was Blink 182. It was so incredibly young sounding and full of energy, it really awoke a more rebellious youth in me and made me want to explore music for myself.
At the time I was playing violin in my 4th grade orchestra and would have rather spent my time catching rattle snakes or chasing lizards in my back yard than play music. Listening to this album when my parents didn’t know I was doing it (and would not have liked it) really made music in general so interesting and invigorating, it was a godsend to me. The song “Reckless Abandon” spoke to a younger and more angst ridden self. I also didn’t get the album title until a few years ago… so there’s that.”
Joe Pug, “Nation of Heat” EP | “Joe Pug might have single-handedly made me want to pursue folk music at a time in my life that was more about formal education and finding a “niche” in the world of business. I was just about to wrap up the first half of my degree at W.P. Carey School of Business and was starting to try to figure out what I wanted to do with my life… Then I experienced the song “Hymn #101.”
I still got my degree, but I’ll be damned if that song didn’t make me want to turn my life into what it is now. That guy can write a damn song. Playing with him at Crescent Ballroom was a dream come true for me—he’s definitely one of my heroes on account of the fact that he’s making it as a folk singer in a time when even our genre is riddled with synths and electric instrumentation… not that there’s anything wrong with that. I love how folk rock has progressed in the last couple of years, but Joe Pug is an inspiration to me, and this EP says so many things to me… a lot of coming of age messages in this one.”
